Chrysanthemum plant named ‘Claudine’

ABSTRACT

A new and distinct cultivar of Chrysanthemum plant named ‘Claudine’, characterized by its rounded plant habit; freely branching habit; uniform and freely flowering habit; decorative-type inflorescences; red purple and light red purple bi-colored ray florets; natural season flowering in early to mid-September in the Northern Hemisphere; and good garden performance.

BOTANICAL CLASSIFICATION/CULTIVAR DESIGNATION

Chrysanthemum×morifolium cultivar Claudine.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Chrysanthemum plant, botanically known as Chrysanthemum×morifolium, commercially known as a garden-type Chrysanthemum and hereinafter referred to by the name ‘Claudine’.

The new cultivar is a product of a planned breeding program conducted by the Inventor in Oostnieuwkerke-Staden, Belgium. The objective of the breeding program is to create new garden-type Chrysanthemum cultivars having inflorescences with desirable inflorescence forms, attractive floret colors and good garden performance.

The new Chrysanthemum originated from a cross made in September, 1997, in Oostnieuwkerke-Staden, Belgium, of the Chrysanthemum cultivar Barbara, disclosed in U.S. Plant Pat. No. 8,607, as the female, or seed, parent with the Chrysanthemum cultivar Fornelly, not patented, as the male, or pollen, parent. The new Chrysanthemum was discovered and selected by the Inventor as a single flowering plant within the progeny of the stated cross grown in a controlled environment in Oostnieuwkerke-Staden, Belgium.

Asexual reproduction of the new cultivar by terminal cuttings taken in a controlled environment in Oostnieuwkerke-Staden, Belgium since November, 1998, has shown that the unique features of this new Chrysanthemum are stable and reproduced true to type in successive generations.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The cultivar Claudine has not been observed under all possible environmental conditions. The phenotype may vary somewhat with variations in environment such as temperature, daylength and light intensity, without, however, any variance in genotype.

The following traits have been repeatedly observed and are determined to be the unique characteristics of ‘Claudine’. These characteristics in combination distinguish ‘Claudine’ as a new and distinct cultivar:

1. Rounded plant habit.

2. Freely branching habit; dense and full plants.

3. Uniform and freely flowering habit.

4. Decorative-type inflorescences.

5. Red purple and light red purple bi-colored ray florets.

6. Natural season flowering in early to mid-September in the Northern Hemisphere.

7. Good garden performance.

Plants of the new Chrysanthemum differ from plants of the female parent, the cultivar Barbara, in the following characteristics:

1. Plants of the new Chrysanthemum are more rounded and not as upright as plants of the cultivar Barbara.

2. Ray florets of plants of the new Chrysanthemum are red purple and light red purple bi-colored whereas ray florets of plants of the cultivar Barbara are red purple-colored.

Plants of the new Chrysanthemum differ from plants of the male parent, the cultivar Fornelly, primarily in ray floret coloration.

Plants of the new Chrysanthemum can be compared to plants of the cultivar Fuschini, not patented. In side-by-side comparisons conducted in Oostnieuwkerke-Staden, Belgium, plants of the new Chrysanthemum differed from plants of the cultivar Fuschini in the following characteristics:

1. Plants of the new Chrysanthemum flowered about five days earlier than plants of the cultivar Fuschini.

2. Plants of the new Chrysanthemum had more ray florets per inflorescence than plants of the cultivar Fuschini.

3. Ray florets of plants of the new Chrysanthemum were lighter in color than ray florets of plants of the cultivar Fuschini.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE PHOTOGRAPHS

The accompanying photographs illustrate the overall appearance of the new Chrysanthemum. These photographs show the colors as true as it is reasonably possible to obtain in colored reproductions of this type. Colors in the photographs may differ slightly from the color values cited in the detailed botanical description which accurately describe the colors of the new Chrysanthemum.

The photograph on the first sheet comprises a side perspective view of a typical flowering plant of ‘Claudine’.

The photograph on the second sheet comprises a close-up view of typical inflorescences of the cultivar ‘Claudine’.

DETAILED BOTANICAL DESCRIPTION

The aforementioned photographs and following observations and measurements describe plants grown in an outdoor nursery in Oostnieuwkerke-Staden, Belgium under natural daylength conditions and cultural practices which approximate those generally used in commercial garden-type Chrysanthemum production. Rooted young plants were planted in 19-cm containers during the summer and pinched about two weeks later. Plants flowered about four months later at the end of September; at that time, the photographs, observations and measurements were taken. During the production of the plants, day temperatures averaged about 19° C. and night temperatures averaged about 13° C. Measurements and numerical values represent averages for typical flowering plants. In the following description, color references are made to The Royal Horticultural Society Colour Chart, 1995 Edition, except where general terms of ordinary dictionary significance are used.

Botanical classification: Chrysanthemum×morifolium cultivar Claudine.

Parentage:

Female, or seed, parent.—Chrysanthemum×morifolium cultivar Barbara, disclosed in U.S. Plant Pat. No. 8,607.

Male, or pollen, parent.—Chrysanthemum×morifolium cultivar Fornelly, not patented.

Propagation:

Type.—Terminal tip cuttings.

Time to initiate roots.—Summer: About 10 days at 25° C. Winter: About 12 days at 20° C.

Time to produce a rooted cutting.—Summer: About 14 days at 25° C. Winter: About 21 days at 20° C.

Root description.—White, thick and fibrous.

Rooting habit.—Freely branching.

Plant description:

Appearance.—Perennial herbaceous decorative-type garden Chrysanthemum. Rounded plant habit; lateral branches initially upright, then outwardly spreading giving a uniformly rounded appearance to the plant. Freely branching with lateral branches forming potentially at every node; dense and full plants.

Plant height.—About 23 cm.

Plant diameter.—About 28 cm.

Lateral branches.—Length: About 13 cm. Diameter: About 2 mm. Texture: Pubescent. Color: 137B.

Foliage description.—Leaf arrangement: Alternate; single. Quantity per lateral branch: About nine. Length: About 3.5 cm. Width: About 3.5 cm. Apex: Apiculate. Base: Acute. Margin: Palmately lobed, sinuate. Texture, upper and lower surfaces: Leathery; glabrous. Venation pattern: Pinnate. Color: Young foliage upper surface: 137D. Young foliage, lower surface: 138D. Fully expanded foliage, upper surface: 137C. Fully expanded foliage, lower surface: 139D. Venation, upper surface: 137C. Venation, lower surface: 144A. Petiole length: About 1 cm. Petiole diameter: About 2 mm. Petiole color, upper and lower surfaces: 139C.

Inflorescence description:

Appearance.—Decorative-type inflorescence form with elliptic ray florets. Inflorescences borne on terminals above foliage, arising from leaf axils. Disk and ray florets arranged acropetally on a capitulum. About six inflorescences per lateral branch. Inflorescences persistent.

Flowering response.—Under natural season conditions, plants flower in early to mid-September in the Northern Hemisphere and continue to flower for about four weeks depending on weather conditions.

Fragrance.—Slight; fragrance typical of species.

Inflorescence bud (stage of showing color).—Height: About 6 mm. Diameter: About 8 mm. Shape: Ovoid. Phyllary color: 146A.

Inflorescence size.—Diameter: About 4 cm. Depth (height): About 1 cm. Disc diameter: About 8 mm.

Ray florets.—Shape: Elliptic. Length: About 1.5 cm. Width: About 6 mm. Apex: Acute. Base: Acute. Margin: Entire. Texture: Smooth, glabrous, satiny. Number of ray florets per inflorescence: About 120. Color: When opening, upper surface: 72A to 72B becoming 71D with development. When opening, lower surface: 70B to 72C with development. Opened inflorescence, upper surface: 68B to 73B; fading to 73C with subsequent development. Opened inflorescence, lower surface: 68B.

Disc florets.—Shape: Tubular, apex dentate. Length: About 3 mm. Width: About 0.7 mm. Color: Immature: 17B. Mature: 16A.

Peduncle.—Angle: Erect. Length: About 3 cm. Diameter: About 25 mm. Texture: Smooth. Strength: Flexible, but strong. Color: 137B.

Reproductive organs.—Androecium: Present on disc florets only. Gynoecium: Present on both ray and disc florets.

Anther color.—9A.

Pollen.—None.

Seed/fruit.—Seed nor fruit production has not been observed.

Disease/pest resistance: Plants of the new Chrysanthemum have not been shown to be resistant to pathogens and pests common to Chrysanthemums.

Garden performance: Plants of the new Chrysanthemum have been observed to be tolerant to rain, wind and temperatures ranging from −3 to 35° C. 

It is claimed:
 1. A new and distinct cultivar of Chrysanthemum plant named ‘Claudine’, as illustrated and described. 